Apple News: iPhone Demand Weakens Amid Peak Holiday Shopping Season
Weaker demand for iPhones, ongoing delivery delays and high inflation could make last year’s blockbuster holiday season hard for Apple (AAPL) to top this year.
Apple’s latest iPhone model – the iPhone 13 - rolled out this quarter to lower-than-expected demand, according to reports.
Bloomberg News reported that Apple has already cut its iPhone 13 production goal for this year by as many as 10 million units, down from a target of 90 million, because of a lack of parts. The company has warned vendors that orders may not materialize.
CNBC reported on Thursday that while Apple’s stock weathered the Omicron-fueled volatility in the market this week, the company acknowledging weak iPhone demand along with ongoing supply chain issues rattled investors.
Shares of Apple on Thursday closed at $163.76, down $1.01, or 0.61%.
But analysts and Apple CEO Tim Cook still expect Apple to report record revenues for the quarter based on last year’s holiday season performance when the company booked more than $100 billion in revenue for the first time.
Analysts are projecting a sales increase of 6% to $117.9 billion in the fiscal fourth quarter.
In addition to the iPhone 13, Apple also introduced a new version of AirPods and a redesigned MacBook Pro for this holiday season.
Cook told CNBC that he expects revenue growth for the quarter, but predicted supply constraints will cost the company at least $6 billion in missed revenue as consumers pull back on trying to find the highly sought-after iPhone 13 or pass on having to deal with delivery delays.
Cook said the hope was to make up much of that $6 billion shortfall next year when supply logjams may be lifted.
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